The Best Ways to Modernize Historic Homes

Modernizing a historic home has its challenges. While old homes may be beautiful and aesthetically appealing, they often aren’t practical for modern living. Fortunately, there are ways to preserve the feeling of such historic homes without sacrificing its ambiance.

Perhaps the most important is to be mindful of the architectural elements of the home. While many would protest to simply leave the way the house is, there is nothing wrong with modernizing it and can even add a nice touch if done correctly.

The following are tips on the best ways to modernize historic homes.

Repair rather than replace

It might be tempting to want to completely change the exterior and interior of the home, but doing so will only serve to ruin historic details. It helps to keep things intact when modernizing a home without making drastic changes.

For example, broken doors, cracked plaster, old cabinets and even damaged furniture can all be repaired. It’s a much cheaper alternative and it definitely helps to keep the distinctive styles that historic homes are known for. Even those items that cannot be repaired can always be replaced with something of a similar style.

Look at different furniture styles

Getting antique furniture that matches with the rest of the home can be a tricky task. Mixing both modern and antique types of furniture is a great way to preserve the interior feeling that historic homes have.

This can also be done in conjunction with changing the wall colors to something more contemporary such as subtle beiges. Color selection is definitely important as it’s key to keep everything flowing smoothly.

Remodel the exterior

Part of what makes historichomes so attractive is their architectural design and exterior trim work. However, if such buildings are not properly maintained then chances are that it probably shows on the exterior of the home.

Problems such as cracked bricks or extensive damage to other areas may be evident. In such situations, it makes sense to get these areas repaired or even completely replaced but keep in mind to keep the style consistent.

Quality windows can always be purchased from sites such as http://sollex.co.uk. Exterior work is quite demanding so hiring a professional designer can be beneficial.

Other areas of the home

Modernizing historic homes is about more than just simply redoing the interior and the exterior. In fact, there are also are other important considerations to remember when doing such a project.

For example, most older homes are not designed to be energy efficient and some even have outdated electrical systems. During renovation, heating and air conditioning systems will also need to be updated as well in order to make the home more livable.

Some people would say to strive to strive to preserve the historical details of the home while others advocate modernizing it with style. Of course, there is no right answer as the choice ultimately comes down to the homeowner.